The series is created, written, and presented by Jay Foreman and Mark Cooper-Jones.[2][3][4] Mark Cooper-Jones is a former geography teacher,[3][4] and the pair met at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, where both were performing that year.[4][when?]
The series started in 2016,[4] and has aired for four series. The episodes are a mix of comedy and geography,[4] with each episode answering a short geographical question, often involving maps.[4] The style has been compared to Horrible Histories[2][3] and the pair cite their inspiration as Monty Python.[4] The videos feature deadpan, split-second visual gags, and comic sketches.[3][5]
The pair have claimed the show's success to be due to the growing redundancy of maps as an everyday item, leaving them to be "geeky".[4] They also cite the mix of comedy and geography as the unique element behind the series, leading to its success compared to other more education-based alternatives.[5] In 2021, the series was nominated under the "learning and education" category for the 11th Streamy Awards, losing to Veritasium.[6]
In 2024, an edited version of the video about why some British place-names are hard to pronounce won 'Video of the Year' in the inaugural UK and Ireland TikTok Awards.
